Friends of LGBT History Month, Mz Fontaine and Dean Atta, were showered with honours at the Black LGBT Community Awards ceremony held on the Thames on Saturday 20th.

Dean Atta, who performed his powerful and moving poems at this year's Schools OUT Conference in February, won the Arts award, whilst Mz Fontaine, who has entertained us at the Conference for two years with her hip-hop perfromance, was declared woman of the year. On receiving the award she thanked her "gay mother" Sue Sanders.

The prestigious awards, which are given annually, mark the achievements of black LGBT people and remind us of how they have made our lives better.

Monday, September 29, 2008

The Schools OUT and LGBT History Month teams would like to invite you to this event to celebrate Paul Patrick's life and the many contributions he made to all our lives.

It will feature a number of his TV and radio appearances, rare DVD footage, music, a performance by Woking’s Peer Productions Youth Theatre and an excerpt from The Rossendale Players performance of The Vagina Monologues, which Paul directed.

There will be an open mic for people to make their personal contributions.

The event will be held on Saturday October 4th 2008 at the Drill Hall,from 3pm till 6.

Please feel free to send this on to others you feel would want to know about this.

Friday, September 26, 2008

We seek them out so you don't have to. This is our weekly non-exhaustive round up of upcoming LGBT programmes on the radio and television. Inclusion of a programme is not a recommendation.Enjoy!

Some of the radio programmes listed below can be listened to again via the Listen Again facility of the BBC's website while some of the television programmes will remain available also for a week on the BBC's iplayer.

Tuesday 30thBBC Radio 4 - 9am: The Choice. Dylan More talks to Michael Buerk about his decision to have a baby after starting female to male transitionBBC Radio 4 - 2.15pm: Play: Number 10. Antony Sher plays PMBBC Radio 4 - 4.30pm: Great Lives. Matthew Parris helps Ian Hislop judge William Hogarth

Wednesday 1stBBC Radio 7 - 8am, 12noon and 7pm: Beyond Our Ken

Thursday 2ndBBC Radio 4 - 9am: In Our Time. Melvyn Bragg looks into the influence of Greek ideas into Arabic culture from the ninth century onwardsBBC Radio 4 - 11.30am: Scraps of Bacon. Novelist James Maw looks into the life of Francis BaconBBC Radio 4 - 8.30pm: In Business. Examines Norway’s decision to make it statutory that all company boards are made up of at least 40% women

Friday, September 19, 2008

We seek them out so you don't have to. This is our weekly non-exhaustive round up of upcoming LGBT programmes on the radio and television. Inclusion of a programme is not a recommendation.Enjoy!

Some of the radio programmes listed below can be listened to again via the Listen Again facility of the BBC's website while some of the television programmes will remain available also for a week on the BBC's iplayer.

RadioSaturday 20thBBC Radio 2 - 10am: Jonathan Ross. Bette Midler and Will Young guestBBC Radio 2 - 5-7pm: Paul Gambaccini. US hitsBBC Radio 4 - 10am: Excess Baggage. Sandi Toksvig presentsBBC Radio 4 - 10.30am: Let Me Entertain You. John Sessions’ history of popular entertainment takes us to Elizabethan LondonBBC Radio 4 - 2.30pm: Saturday Play: Bora Bora. Derek Jacobi plays art historian Alec in a play that was written for him personally by Lynne Truss. Alec has always lived in the shadow of his famous brother and a biographer brings out a terrible secret.6 Music - 12midnight: BBC Introducing. Tom Robinson

Film and dramaSaturday 20thC4 - 7.30pm: The Lord of the Rings. The Two Towers. Hail Gandalf againSky Movies Premiere - 8pm: I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. Caused enormous offence at the box officeSci-Fi - 10pm: Rocky Horror Picture Show. That’s no way to behave on your first night out!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

The Pre-Launch of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans History Month 2009 will be taking place on the evening of Wednesday, the 19th of November, 2008, at The Hackney Free and Parochial Church of England School in London.

The event is sponsored by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and is a part of The National Anti Bullying Week.

Our theme in 2009 is Education and Youth and the Pre-Launch is taking place in a school for the first time (in previous years the pre-launch took place at Tate Modern (2004), the Metropolitan Police's Empress State Building (2005), The TUC's Congress House (2006) and The Royal Courts of Justice (2007).

The Education Minister Kevin Brennan will be the key speaker for the evening. He told LGBT History Month:

‘I want homophobia to become taboo…from the flippant use of homophobic language to the deliberate bullying of people because they’re gay or ‘different’. Both are wrong, both need to stop.

‘And when we say that ‘every child matters’, we mean that every young person – straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, black, white, disabled – boy or girl matters.’

All schools now have a duty now to promote all the equalities, in all their diversities, with the arrival of the Single Equality Act. LGBT History Month is a tool to support work within that duty.

As such, the 19th of November will be a celebration of work done by teachers, youth workers and young people. It will be a chance to view exhibitions that have been made specifically for LGBT History Month from around the country and meet with other educators, youth workers, and people interested in the work.

Co-chair of History Month, Sue Sanders, commented:

‘It is wonderful to see the DCSF logo alongside the Metropolitan Police, the NHS, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Ministry of Justice.

‘We are thrilled the education system is now coming on board. We are honoured that Kevin Brennan will be attending the prelaunch at the Hackney Free Parochial Church of England School in November, as part of Anti Bullying Week.

‘The month is a crucial tool in raising visibility of LGBT identities, and thus challenging prejudice, stereotypes and discrimination.’

February 2009 will be the fifth edition of LGBT History Month in the UK. It will also mark the tenth anniversary of the Stephen Lawrence Report; we are proud to be a player in the work to challenge all forms of prejudice, stereotypes and discrimination.

The Pre-Launch puts LGBT History Month on the education calendar and makes the point that all schools - faith and secular - can celebrate the achievements of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans people, past and present, local and worldwide, famous and grassroots.

Also planned for the evening:

* a DVD of Students’ work * pupils’ performances * Two teachers demonstrating how to do LGBT History Month in schools * No Outsiders work in primary schools. * How to celebrate LGBT History Month within a religious context * an exhibition by the Proud Heritage Museum Project * a display by Gay Birmingham Remembered * a Nottingham Heritage timeline * Lesbian Gay Christian Movement resources

You will be inspired, and will take inspiration and support from others. You will be ready to design and develop your own events in February 2009!

Friday, September 12, 2008

We seek them out so you don't have to. This is our weekly non-exhaustive round up of upcoming LGBT programmes on the radio and television. Inclusion of a programme is not a recommendation.Enjoy!

Some of the radio programmes listed below can be listened to again via the Listen Again facility of the BBC's website while some of the television programmes will remain available also for a week on the BBC's iplayer.

Tuesday 16thBBC Radio 4 - 4.30pm: Great Lives. Presented by Matthew ParrisBBC Radio 4 - 9am and 9.30pm: The Choice. with Rabbi Roderick Young

Wednesday 17thBBC Radio 7 - 8am, 12noon & 7pm: Beyond our Ken

Thursday 18thBBC Radio 4 - 11.30am Thoroughly Modest Mollie. Bernard Cribbins plays tribute to the comedy writer Mollie Millest, who wrote scripts for Round the Horne and lived another life as a Salvation Army member

Monday 15thBBC1 - 11am: Open House. Kristian DigbyBBC1 - 10.35pm: The Dark Side of Fame with Piers Morgan. Morgan interviews Jim Davidson who expresses his views on homosexuality. Sounds like one to watch and then complain aboutBBC2 - 8.30pm: What to Eat Now. Valentine Warner is the hunky new chef who spends more time standing in rivers and crawling under hedges than he does in the kitchenC4 - 8.20am: Will and GraceC4 - 5.30pm: Come Dine with MeDave - 9pm: QISky2 - 8pm: Hairspray The Schools MusicalLiving - 7pm & 1am: Will and GraceLiving 2 - 11am: Queer Eye for the Straight GuySky Arts - 5.30pm: Simoan Callow’s Classic DestinationsBiography - 6am: The Real James DeanBiography - 2pm: Lindsay Lohan off the Rails

Thursday, September 11, 2008

A film celebrating the life and achievements of an openly gay Californian politician is about to be released in the US. Milk is a biopic of the eponymous Harvey Milk, the USA’s first elected out politician, who became supervisor of San Francisco until he was shot dead in 1978. The role of Harvey Milk is played by Sean Penn and the movie is directed by Gus Van Sant.

Milk had been a teacher before entering politics and he campaigned against homosexual teachers being sacked from California schools under a law proposed by California Senator John Briggs. However he is probably more famous for outing the closet gay who saved President Gerald Ford’s life when he took a bullet in 1975.

Milk, and San Francisco Mayor Moscone were both murdered by arch rival anti-gay conservative Dan White. He turned himself in but his trial was a fiasco and his lenient sentence caused riots among the LGBT community.

Although the film follows the bleak Hollywood tradition that rules all LGBT lives end in tragedy, it’s a very sympathetic portrayal of a man whose life and achievements must be kept alive in history.

Milk is released in Germany and San Francisco next month and is due for release in the rest of the US in December. The date of release in the UK is unknown but it is most likely to be February.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

The Terrence Higgins Trust, the UK largest HIV and AIDS charity, has launched a new website in an attempt to reach the large migrant part of the LGBT community. In addition to sexual health advice, the site features advice on the gay scene in the UK, how to get visas, work, accommodation and other tips for a successful time in the UK.

The site also offers downloadable leaflet in 6 European languages: English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Polish

Saturday, September 6, 2008

We seek them out so you don't have to. This is our weekly non-exhaustive round up of upcoming LGBT programmes on the radio and television. Inclusion of a programme is not a recommendation.Enjoy!

Some of the radio programmes listed below can be listened to again via the Listen Again facility of the BBC's website while some of the television programmes will remain available also for a week on the BBC's iplayer.

Monday 8thBBC Radio 4 - 9am: Fry’s English Delight. Third of a three-parter for language lovers by Stephen Fry. ClichéBBC Radio 4 - 9.45pm: Book of the Week. Evan Davis introduces GreedBBC Radio 4 - 6.30pm: Just a Minute. Sue PerkinsBBC Radio 7 - 12noon & 7pm: The Navy Lark

Tuesday 9thBBC Radio 4 - 9.45am: Book of the Week. Evan Davis with Making MoneyBBC Radio 4 - 4.30pm: Great Lives presented by Matthew Parris

Wednesday 10thBBC Radio 4 - 9.45am: Book of the Week. Evan Davis with Making MoneyBBC Radio 4 - Big Bang Day. Cern’s Large Hadron Coller is to be switched on. This means nothing to me, but all the programmes are special.BBC Radio 4 - 11am: Big Bang Day: Physics Rocks. A team discuss the Universe. Includes Eddie Izzard and John BarrowmanBBC Radio 4 - 11.30am: Kicking the Habit. Comedy, written by Christopher LeeBBC Radio 4 - 2.15pm: Torchwood: Lost Souls. Special radio editionBBC Radio 7 - 12noon & 7pm: Beyond our Ken

Thursday 11thBBC Radio 4 - 9.45am: Book of the Week. Evan Davis with Making Money

Friday 12thBBC Radio 4 - 9.45am: Book of the Week. Evan Davis with Making MoneyBBC Radio 4 - 1.30pm: For one night only. Paul Gambaccini on Elvis’ return to TV in 1968BBC Radio 4 - 11pm: Great Lives presented by Matthew Parris (rpt)6 Music - 7pm: Tom Robinson. New acts

Friday, September 5, 2008

Cliff Richard has just released his autobiography. The most reported bit of information the book is offering is that, after decades of speculations, Richards seems to finally be coming out in it, telling how he has lived for seven years with his "companion", a former Catholic priest.

He also offers his view on same-sex marriage and how the Church should view them.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

The process started by the Catholic Church to create the first new English saint in over forty years have recently hit controversy. Canonisation is a complex and lengthy process with involve many hurdles and stages. One of them is the exhumation of the body of the intended saint for the collection of relics.

John Henry Cardinal Newman, an influencial figure of the 19th century who died in 1890, is apparently set to be exhumed and reburied in a different location before the end of the year. The problem lies in the fact that Newman has explicitly and in several occasions expressed the wish to remain buried alongside Father Ambrose St John, the man he shared the last years of his life.

The exact nature of the relationship between the two men is not completely clear, although Newman's biography indicates a strong interest in male frienships. The headstone of the two men bear a latin expression meaning "out of shadows and phantasms into the truth", which many consider as a coming out.

The fact that the bodies of the two men are to be separated has been highlighted by campaigner like Peter Tatchell as another example of the Catholic Church's aggressive stance against LGBT people and calls for the exhumation not to take place come for all sides of the argument.

Peter Tatchell told The Independent: "The Vatican's decision to move Cardinal Newman's body from its resting place is an act of grave robbery and religious desecration. It violates Newman's repeated wish to be buried for eternity with his life-long partner Ambrose St John.

"They have been together for more than 100 years and the Vatican wants to disturb that peace to cover up the fact that Cardinal Newman loved a man. It's shameful, dishonourable betrayal of Newman by the gay-hating Catholic Church."

At the same time an online poll on the Church Times' website revealed that (at the time of writing) 83 per cent of the 507 people who responded were opposed to the Vatican's decision to move Newman's body.

In response to Tatchell's attack, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, told BBC's Radio 4 Sunday programme: 'I don't think anyone disputes that Cardinal Newman loved Ambrose St John... But it is simply wrong to read back from today's categories into the Victorian periods when these very intense, passionate, but totally celibate relationships among the Anglo-Catholic community were very common,' adding that gay rights campaigners were using the issue to advance their own agenda against the Church.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

LGBT History Month has been nominated for the Black LGBT Community Awards 2008 in the category Advocacy Group. The award recompenses the organisation who has made the biggest impact on ensuring that Black LGBT communities are represented in society and that their rights are protected.

The awards are organised by the Black Gay Men’s Advisory Group, an independent group of black gay and bisexual men of African and African/Caribbean parentage working for and on behalf of black men who have sex with men. Award categories include Lifetime Achievement, Woman and Man of the Year, Club of the Year, Arts, Community Development, Communications and Health Promotion.

The award ceremony will take place on 20 September. To vote for your favorites, visit www.blgbt.com (until 8 September).

Disclaimer

This blog aims to provide information, which is relevant, and as up-to-date and accurate as possible. Inclusion of an item in these pages does not constitute a recommendation from LGBT History Month for external services/events thus advertised.

LGBT History Month is not responsible for the content of external websites.